Beyoncé Country Music Awards, CMAs Black History

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As Beyoncé prepares to show up and show out at the Country Music Association Awards tonight, I've got a little history lesson for you. Despite claims to the contrary, Bey is just as entitled to the genre as the award show's overwhelmingly white pool of nominees. Indeed: Country music — mostly associated with white fans and artists — has Black origins. Khari Jackson, a cartoonist and archivist, schooled Bey's haters with a deep dive into the genre's roots. Instead of looking at country music as a white art form, we all ought to recognize its importance to the African diaspora.

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beyonce is performing at the country music awards tonight. i've been saying this forever: it's time the African diaspora take back our genre
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

Notice that this is an argument in favor of reclaiming country music's Black legacy. It's not about invading the CMAs — because truly, who needs them?

i'm not advocating to try to be included in the CMAs. nah. we can do our own Black (and Brown) country music celebrations
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

i remember reading a thinkpiece by a bitter white person arguing daddy lessons wasn't a country song because it wasn't recorded in Nashville
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

BUT THESE WHITE FOLKS LOVE TO LEAVE OUT HOW WE STARTED THE GENRE AND THE INSTRUMENTS, SUCH AS THE BANJO, CAME FROM AFRICA
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

See the subtle racism in critiques that Lemonade's "Daddy Lessons" doesn't actually qualify as country music. It doesn't matter where a song is recorded or the race of the singer: "Daddy Lessons" is about as country as it comes. And according to her collaborators, Bey is a musician who's familiar with country music's history.

this isn't a debate. the receipts are there. Black folks are responsible for this genre. and we do an amazing job when we perform it.
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

honestly, i see so much potential in Black folks using this genre and style as another way of story telling & communicating w/ the Diaspora.
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

*queues daddy lessons and starts channeling my Black southern ancestors*
— auntie khari #NODAPL (@jkharij) November 2, 2016

So there you have it: Bey slays again. The 50th Annual CMA Awards air tonight at 8 p.m. EDT.

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